The UNiTE Campaign in 2016: Gearing up for action

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BACKGROUND

Throughout 2015, the UNiTE campaign advocated, organized and mobilized its constituencies to keep violence against women at the top of national and global agendas. It highlighted key developments, engaged diverse communities, and focused its global advocacy on ensuring that violence against women and girls was prioritized in the global development agenda.

A new global development agenda, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted in September 2015. It was accepted by all countries and is applicable to all. Through its 17 goals and 169 targets, the agenda for global action for the next 15 years addresses the three dimensions of sustainable development; the economic, social and environmental. It recognizes gender equality and the empowerment of women as a key priority and pledges that ‘no one will be left behind’. Goal 5 of the agenda aims to ‘Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls’ and includes specific targets to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls. The goals are integrated and indivisible, therefore the achievement of many of the other goals is also essential to progressing efforts to prevent and elimination violence against women and girls.

The adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals was a milestone in the advancement of the global development agenda with great potential to accelerate efforts to prevent and eliminate violence against women and girls. The agenda is, however, extremely ambitious and if it is to be successful, must be adequately financed. Implementation will also require national ownership and leadership by governments and the dynamic engagement of civil society organizations to  support the implementation and hold government to account for progress.

THE UNiTE CAMPAIGN IN ACTION IN 2016

In 2016, the UNiTE campaign will focus its global advocacy on:

1. THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AS IT RELATES TO VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS
   
   In 2016, the UNiTE campaign will continue to mark 25^th of every month as “Orange Day,” a day to raise awareness and take action to end violence against women and girls. Orange Days will highlight specific goals from the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as they relate violence against women and girls. Each month throughout the year, the UNiTE campaign will use as its Orange Day theme a Sustainable Development Goal which is particularly relevant to violence against women and girls,  exploring the interlinkages, and providing recommended actions and sample messages. The #globalgoals are for everyone, and to fully achieve them, everyone has a role to play in breaking the barrier of gender inequality and violence. Watch out for the 2016 Orange Day themes which will be posted shortly at https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/take-action
   
2. ADEQUATE RESOURCING FOR EFFORTS TO END VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS
   
   At present, resources for initiatives to prevent and end violence against women and girls are severely lacking. Through its advocacy in 2016, the UNiTE campaign will raise awareness of this shortfall and support efforts to reverse this trend. In particular, it will support the fundraising efforts of the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, which celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year. As the only multilateral grant making mechanism addressing this issue, the Fund is a good example of the potential impact and local results that are possible when programs aimed at ending violence are adequately funded.
   
   The UN Trust Fund’s grants range from youth engagement programmes, to community-based interventions, to initiatives providing social, medical, financial and psychological support to survivors of violence and those at risk. Since its creation, the UN Trust Fund has awarded more than USD 115 million to 426 initiatives in 136 countries and territories. It currently supports 104 programmes in 76 countries, with a value of USD 51.7 million.

START PLANNING YOUR ORANGE DAY ACTIVITIES FOR 2016:

• Start a conversation with colleagues, students and your community about the Sustainable Development Goals and how they can be used to support efforts to prevent and end violence against women and girls.  Discuss how you can work together to ensure that progress in your country is on track to achieve gender equality and eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls by 2030. Consider the following questions in your discussions:
  • What are the Sustainable Development Goals? How do they matter to your lives and community?
  • What action is your government taking to implement the Sustainable Development Goal 5 on Gender Equality and its targets for ending violence against women and girls?
  • What action can other decision-makers, community members, institutions, you or your family can take to end violence and discrimination against women and girls?
  • What steps should be taken to ensure that institutional mechanisms are in place for localizing the SDGs for planning and implementation, and for monitoring, review and follow-up to track progress in relation targets for ending violence against women and girls?
  • What steps are being put in place at national level to monitor and track resource allocations for the elimination of violence against women?
• Strategize around how you can link to the Sustainable Development Goals through the lens of violence against women. Tell us about your action ideas via Twitter @SayNO_UNiTE using the hashtag #OrangeDay or via the Say NO – UNITE Facebook page.
• Wear orange on 25 January and remind the world that the elimination of violence against women and girls is essential to the success of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Share your Orange Day photograph and/or message via Twitter @SayNO_UNiTE using the hashtag #OrangeDay or via the Say NO – UNITE Facebook page.

USEFUL RESOURCES

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

UN Women position paper, A Transformative stand-alone goal on achieving gender equality, women’s rights and women’s empowerment: imperatives and key components, June 2013
https://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2013/7/post-2015-long-paper

The Sustainable Development Goals Knowledge Platform
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics/sustainabledevelopmentgoals

The Progress of the World’s Women, 2015 – 2016
http://progress.unwomen.org/en/2015/

SAMPLE SOCIAL MEDIA MESSAGES

TWITTER

Its #OrangeDay and #UNiTE is busy planning for 2016. Watch out for our #OrangeDay themes for this year coming soon! http://ow.ly/Xnpxe 

In 2016 #OrangeDay will take a closer look at how ending #VAW is a must for achieving #globalgoals & #planet5050: http://ow.ly/Xnpxe

Happy #OrangeDay! What are you planning to support the efforts to end #VAW in 2016? Share your plans with @SayNO_UNiTE

Happy #OrangeDay. In 2016 #UNiTE callhttp:///s for implementation of the #SDGs and adequate funding to end #VAW. Join us! http://ow.ly/Xnpxe

FACEBOOK

Happy #OrangeDay! This year we’ll be highlighting the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as it relates to global efforts to end violence against women and girls and the need for adequate financing to make this a reality. Watch out for the 2016 #OrangeDay themes coming soon! http://ow.ly/Xnpxe

The UNiTE campaign has declared the 25th of every month as #OrangeDay – a day of action to end all forms of violence against women and girls. The 2016 action themes will focus on the implementation of the #globalgoals and the Sustainable Development Agenda. What activities are you planning in 2016? Share your plans on Twitter or Facebook using the hashtag #OrangeDay! http://ow.ly/Xnpxe  via [@SayNO.UNiTE]

On 25 January, #UNiTE is calling on activists to gear up for 2016 #OrangeDay actions. This year, #OrangeDay will focus on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as it relates to ending violence against women and girls. Start a conversation in your community about the #globalgoals as they apply to you and to ensure that your country is on track for achieving gender equality and ending all forms of violence against women and girls by 2030. http://ow.ly/Xnpxe